< Previous20 COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 FEATURE KARLA KLAY ArTIST BOAT An idyllic childhood in the Florida Keys inspired Artist Boat Founding Di- rector Karla Klay to devote her career to educating people about the wilds of Galveston and the plants, birds and animals living in its wetlands and coastal prairies. “Everything I do is a big thank you for my childhood,” Klay said. “I was immersed in nature and held by nature and I’m just so grateful. I don’t think people appreciate nature enough, and especially the ocean. Half of every breath we take is thanks to oxygen created by phytoplankton.” Klay had a unique childhood “with sharks in the background and dolphins as playmates,” she said. Her parents developed technology to transport live sharks. She took this love of marine environments to a new level in 1997 when she moved to the island to pursue a Bachelor of Science in marine biology from Texas A&M University at Galveston. She already had achieved a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Southern Methodist University, and Artist Boat came from her desire to blend art and science to inspire and educate people about marine environments. With no similar organization in existence, she launched Artist Boat in 2003. “One of the best parts of my job is when nature surprises and inspires me,” she said. “At a certain time of year, fog covers Galveston, coating the spider webs on the marshes. You don’t normally see them, but at this time they glisten. During migration, we have thousands of indigo bunting birds who land and are exhausted. They fill up their bellies here so they can keep going and it makes me so happy our ecosystem can sustain them. I feel awe when nature sur- prises me, and feeling awe is such a crucial piece of human health.” Klay’s love for nature has been good for Galveston. Under her leadership, Artist Boat has hosted 180,000 members of the public and underserved youth on boat tours, restored more than 60 acres of coastal habitats and created coast- al-inspired public art on 50 sites and the Galveston seawall. With its One in a Million campaign, Artist Boat has conserved 898 acres, well on the way to its goal of conserving 1,400 acres from the beach to the bay. In the next 20 years, she hopes to realize an even bigger dream to have an education center on the island that meets the United Nations’ standards of not only educating people but inspir- ing them to take action to protect the environment. She wants us all to feel awe, she said. – Shannon Caldwell Karla Klay, executive director of the environmental nonprofit Artist Boat, has helped educate both children and adults about the island’s wetlands and coastal prairies, as well as preserve more than 800 acres on the West End in the organization’s Coastal Heritage Preserve. COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 21 STENNIE MEADOURS GALVESTON BAY INJUrED BIrD rESPONSE TEAM Stennie Meadours is a champion for conservation and an environmental evangelist with a focus on birds — es- pecially those that have been injured. Meadours is the area coordinator for the Galveston Bay Injured Bird Response Team and oversees 25 volunteers who rescue birds and have them transported to Houston for med- ical treatment. But her involvement with her feathered friends doesn’t end there. Among many other things she’s involved in is a monthly survey of birds at the Texas City Dike with Houston Audubon Society counting the number of species in the area. Meadours, in her eighth decade as an environmentalist, remembers that as a child she often went fishing with her grandfather. But she was more in- terested in seeing the birds and trying to figure out the mysteries of nature, she said. She spent 25 years with the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and has been a Master Naturalist for 20 years. She regularly lectures at the Moore Memorial Library in Texas City about birds and is a guest speaker each year at FeatherFest. She lives in San Leon with her 11-year-old cockatoo, Comet, who mimics her throughout the day. “I do all of this to keep me healthy,” she said. “There are so many really nice people with a similar mindset in the birding community.” – Barbara Canetti PHOTO: COU r TESY ALAN WILDE Stennie Meadours, a Master Naturalist for 20 years, is the area coordinator for the Galveston Bay Injured Bird Response Team. Started in 2017, the group facilitates the rescue and transport of injured birds to the Wildlife Center of Texas in Houston.22 COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 FEATURE GALVESTON ISLAND TREE CONSERVANCY In 2008, Hurricane Ike had destroyed more than 40,000 trees in Galveston — 80 percent of the island’s tree canopy. Since then, the Galveston Island Tree Conservancy has planted more than 21,300 trees on the island to restore the past and enhance the future. Galveston Island Tree Conservancy President Alice Anne O’Donell and Executive Director Priscilla Files say they have no plans to stop anytime soon. Since 2009, the conservancy has recorded 619,176 volunteer hours for planting trees. Crape myrtle, Texas pecan and Mexi- can sycamore are just some of the trees that are native or thrive in the distinc- tive growing conditions in Galveston. The community experienced a lot of trauma after Hurricane Ike, Files said. Replanting trees was one of the ways to rebuild the community. “The message is to help the com- munity understand the value of trees, not just what they gain from shade or habitat, but the beauty of trees,” O’Donell said. Through many programs the conservancy has, such as Neighbor- Woods, which is a partnership with the Galveston Tree Committee and the Texas Forest Service and several local neighborhood associations, people are given the opportunity to plant more trees, Files said. “One of the most satisfying things about being in the conservancy is see- ing the trees you planted and seeing how much they’ve grown, from 12 feet tall to 25 feet tall,” Files said. “It’s really a miracle.” – José Mendiola Priscilla Files, from left, executive director and arborist for the Galveston Island Tree Conservancy; John Campbell, president of the Galveston Founda- tion; and Alice Anne O’Donell, chairwoman of the conservancy’s board, stand among Texas sabal palms at Menard Park in Galveston. The palms were transplanted at the park from the island’s West End with funds from the Ola Mae St. Germain estate via Campbell.Caring for children of all ages knows Pediatrics The University of Texas Medical Branch is in-network for most major insurance plans. Call our 24/7 Access Services team at (800) 917-8906 , visit our website at utmbhealth.com/pediatrics or scan the QR code to find a provider and schedule your next appointment. UTMB Health knows that nothing is more important than the well-being of your children. Equipped with the experience, training and compassion necessary to meet the ever-evolving needs of the next generation, our pediatric primary care providers are passionate about the health of children in all stages of development. From routine visits to specialist referrals and everything in between, UTMB Health pediatricians and providers are true partners in the health of your kids. SCAN TO LEARN MORE Our pediatricians can help with: •Annual well-child visits •Chronic conditions •Hearing and vision screens •Immunizations •Referrals to specialists •Sports physicals •Minor injuries and illnesses UTMB Health has over 130 years of expertise caring for children of all ages.24 COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 FEATURE BIRDS OF THE BEACHES What everyone should know about these far-flying avians story by KATHRYN EASTBURN photos by JENNIFER REYNOLDS K risten Vale often can be found on Galveston beaches, protect- ing the eggs of nesting birds from human visitors and their four-legged companions. From spring break to Labor Day, many beach birds lay their eggs right on the sand, at the edge of the dunes or in the dunes, and later can be seen herding their chicks to the water’s edge to feed on insects and tiny crabs. “They are so tiny and cute but they often blend into their environment,” Vale said. “We have to let people know they’re out there.” A loose dog, for example, might enjoy scattering a flock of birds by running right into the middle of a large group, disturbing their feeding and endangering young chicks. Visitors are encouraged to walk around large groups of birds rather than scattering them, to keep their dogs on leashes and to avoid walking along the edge of the dunes where they might unknowingly smash freshly laid eggs or even small offspring, especially during those spring and summer months. Vale, who works as Texas Coastal Program coordinator for the American Bird Conser- vancy, has spent a decade on Galveston beaches shepherding conservation efforts COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 25 A flock of sanderlings takes flight at Galves- ton Island State Park.26 COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 FEATURE and studying the endangered piping plover for her master’s degree thesis. As such, she has become an expert on which birds visitors are most likely to observe on Galveston Island and Bolivar Peninsula beaches. Beyond the ubiquitous laugh- ing gulls, visitors can’t help but see, especially if someone is tossing bread chunks up into the air, Galveston’s most commonly seen beach birds might ap- pear to be here year-round, but in real- ity, many of them are nesting or resting before taking off for faraway places. Here’s what visitors need to know to better appreciate and protect five species commonly seen on Galveston Island beaches and nearby. SANDERLING Besides those gulls, the most com- mon bird on Galveston beaches is the sanderling, generally referred to as a sandpiper. These are the quick, plump little salt-and-pepper colored birds visitors see running fast, chas- ing waves back and forth. They are gray with specks on top and black legs. The sanderling is one of the most underrated birds and is a world traveler, Vale said. “They will fly north to nest in a small area in the Arctic circle, 3,000 miles away,” Vale said. “They’ll spend a very short amount of time there, lay their eggs on the ground, then fly back to Galveston for the winter.” One of the most widespread birds in the world, sanderlings are beginning to show a deep decline in their popula- tion because of climate change and the vulnerability of their nesting area. “Like many young birds, they may wait a couple of years to go up north to nest,” Vale said. “You could see some (Right, from top) A sanderling races along the water’s edge in search of food on the West End of Galveston; a willet feeds near the west end of the seawall in Galveston. (Opposite) A piping plover rests in the wrack line at Galveston Island State Park. COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 27 year-round on our beaches, and those we see in summer are not mature.” WILLET Very common on our beaches and one of the largest of our beach birds, the Willet has long legs and a long bill and is colored a drab gray. But when it’s in flight, observers can see its striking black-white-black wing pattern, a long stripe. Willets also are distinguished by their piercing and very loud call. “In the winter, you can see them near sanderlings, using their bills to probe the sand for crabs and crustaceans, and in summer they move to the dunes and marshes where they nest,” Vale said. PIPING PLOVER “It’s my absolute favorite bird of all time,” Vale said. “It looks like a little marshmallow with legs.” When we see them on Galveston beaches during fall, winter and spring, sanderlings are here to rest, not to nest. They travel north in summer to lakes — some 100 miles away and others as far as 1,000 miles — to nest and lay their eggs. “They are special to Texas because 50 percent of their population nests in Texas,” Vale said. “They need our beaches to survive winter, to fatten up before flying north.” In fact, piping plovers, technically a threatened species in Texas and en- dangered elsewhere in North America, depend on protection of their habitat because they return to the same stretch of beach every year, flying by sight. They can be seen on Galveston beaches, especially near Galveston Island State Park, running with the sanderlings, distinguishable by their size and bright orange legs. “(The piping plover) is my absolute favorite bird of all time. It looks like a little marshmallow with legs.” KRISTEN VALE28 COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 FEATURE LEAST TERN The world’s smallest tern — it weighs in at about the same size as a mockingbird — nests on Galveston beaches, arriving here in March and April and leaving for South America or the Caribbean by Labor Day. They can be identified by their sharp, point- ed, bright yellow bills; thin, pointed wings; forked tail and black caps. They feed on fish, diving in the water. “You’ll see them feeding in the waves, picking up little fish, then bringing them back to their mate and chicks,” Vale said. Least terns nest in front of the dunes, sometimes even on the high tide line and are vulnerable to water level fluctuations and shoreline devel- opment. “We also have Caspian terns here, the largest tern in the world, on Gal- veston beaches,” Vale said. BLACK SKIMMER Less common but worth seeking out, the black skimmer is an elegant bird — slender, black and white with an orange bill and black markings — that flies across the surface of waves with its bill dropping down to skim the water and snag a fish. “You can see them feeding early in the morning or at evening tide,” Vale said. “We see them resting together in wintertime in larger numbers.” Black skimmers are here year- round, nesting on Galveston beaches some of the time, but preferring to nest on islands in the bay. When extreme high tide events wash away their eggs and chicks, they might move to Galveston beaches to nest. A section of East Beach has been fenced off as a protected area for nesting. COASTMONTHLY.COM | MArCH 2023 29 A male least tern delivers a small fish to a female as part of a courtship ritual. (Opposite) A black skimmer dips the lower mandible of its uneven beak into the East End Lagoon in Galveston. FILE PHOTO: THE DAILY NEWSNext >